Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Hybrid bluegill and swimming in a new pond

It sounds like you will be getting primarily a ground water pond that is primarily just digging a hole. Always remember you build a pond you dig a hole. Holes usually leak water. Since you have quite a bit of watershed make sure that the spillway is sized properly. At times the pond could get lots and lots of runoff water. There was a good article about spillways in the Nov-Dec 2007 Pond Boss mag.

I will make sure I reread that before this weekend. The area that the hole will be dug is lower by about 25 feet than the area the house will be built. In the area that would be flooded there isn't anything that could be hurt by it.

I will have to check the soil charts, but I think the area that the pond is going to be dug is primarily clay, but I will have to check on that. I will make sure to ask as well, because we don't need something that is constantly leaking water.

I just talked to the guy who dug the small pond attached to the marsh. He said his pond is small and shallow, he was not happy with the guy who dug it. He definitely didn't read "Perfect Pond...Want One?". He pretty much just left the guy there to dig it and didn't check on him.

He said there aren't many if any fish. His buddy the fisherman has been fishing them out of the local lake and then dropping them in his pond. He doesn't think any of them have lived. I guess I will just have to check in the spring. I was hoping he was going to tell me there wasn't anything in there. Oh well.

Trider - You can hope the small pond winter kills to keep fish thinned out. Being stocked by a fisherman can be real iffy. Most fishermen will tell you they know their fish, but when you start pinning them into a corner with sunfish, bgill, green sunfish and their hybrids their mind and opinions often get very fuzzy. Separating bullheads from catfish is a challenge for some fishermen. Fishing and trapping the small pond will be enlightening.

OK, we met with the guy on Sunday, seemed very knowledgable.

He suggested not connecting the pond to the marsh. That we should put it next to the marsh because it is a good location, but not connect them, use some of the spoils to separate the two. Thoughts and comments?

We are going to take a conduit rod and see if we can hit anything solid in the marsh area that we are going to dig. He is hoping that it isn't a black hole of back dirt.

Pricewise he said that in that location it would range from $15,000 for a half acre pond to $25,000 for a full acre. Seems appropriate to me, but wondered what others had experienced with prices.

Thanks

A quick question from a newbie. I just got my old pond dug out and made bigger this summer. (Very bad silting ~10 ft!). It's about 0.5-.75 ac in size and ~ 12-15 deep. The last rain storm finally filled it to the top. It's now early January in central Indiana. Can I start to stock the pond with FHM and shiners now? I've got access to a creek and a friend's pond. I'm thinking about the YP/SMB combination since I used to be from Michigan and like catching and eating them. I can get SMB and Rock bass from the nearby Sugar Creek area.

Thanks for all the info!

drz how about starting your own thread for your question, its unlikely to be found buried in four pages of this thread.

Tororider what are you going to do with the spoils from the pond, and how many yards do you think are going to be excavated? If the contractor needs to move the dirt any kind of distance the price will double.

$1-$2 per yard is a good price up here, with about $1 for digging and another $1 for moving the dirt.